Charles Bukowski
Henry Charles Bukowski (born Heinrich Karl Bukowski; August 16, 1920 – March 9, 1994) was a German-born American poet, novelist, and short story writer. His writing was influenced by the social, cultural, and economic ambiance of his home city of Los Angeles. His work addresses the ordinary lives of poor Americans, the act of writing, alcohol, relationships with women, and the drudgery of work. Bukowski wrote thousands of poems, hundreds of short stories and six novels, eventually publishing over sixty books. The FBI kept a file on him as a result of his column, Notes of a Dirty Old Man, in the LA underground newspaper Open City. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.)
Charles Bukowski was a prolific underground writer who used his his poetry and prose to depict the depravity of urban life and the downtrodden in American society. A cult hero, Bukowski relied on experience, emotion, and imagination in his work, using direct language and violent and sexual imagery. While some critics found his style offensive, others claimed that Bukowski satirized the machismo attitude through his routine use of sex, alcohol abuse, and violence. “Without trying to make himself look good, much less heroic, Bukowski writes with a nothing-to-lose truthfulness which sets him apart from most other ‘autobiographical’ novelists and poets,” commented Stephen Kessler in the San Francisco Review of Books, adding: “Firmly in the American tradition of the maverick, Bukowski writes with no apologies from the frayed edge of society.” Michael Lally in Village Voice maintained that “Bukowski is…a phenomenon. He has established himself as a writer with a consistent and insistent style based on what he projects as his ‘personality,’ the result of hard, intense living.” (The Poetry Foundation)
(I thought this was appropriate in light of The Sandbox Writing Challenge this past Tuesday…)
* * * * *
Throwing Away the Alarm Clock
my father always said, “early to bed and
early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy
and wise.”
it was lights out at 8 p.m. in our house
and we were up at dawn to the smell of
coffee, frying bacon and scrambled
eggs.
my father followed this general routine
for a lifetime and died young, broke,
and, I think, not too
wise.
taking note, I rejected his advice and it
became, for me, late to bed and late
to rise.
now, I’m not saying that I’ve conquered
the world but I’ve avoided
numberless early traffic jams, bypassed some
common pitfalls
and have met some strange, wonderful
people
one of whom
was
myself—someone my father
never
knew.
(Picture Credits: Charles Bukowski — the-toast.net / alarm clock — www.shutterstock.com)
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Colette B said:
Definitely a poem in tune with the challenge theme for this week, really enjoyed the poem, and interesting to be introduced to another new-to-me poet 🙂
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calensariel said:
Well howdy thar, my dear! Good to see you back on! Hope all is well.
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Fimnora Westcaw said:
He sounds like my kind of guy. And we’re living the late to bed, late to rise thing already. 🙂
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calensariel said:
Indeed you are! I just think of you as the Night Owl. Sounds like a superhero name, doesn’t it? 😀
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Fimnora Westcaw said:
Actually, if I’m remembering, we had a lady DJ on radio back when I was still living in NYC, who was called, “The Night Owl.” But I think it’s a hoot to be thought of as one (pun intended 😛 )… 😉
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calensariel said:
LMBO!!! 😀
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spiritualdragonfly said:
Ohhhhh…That’s Good!!!!!!
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calensariel said:
His stuff seems to be very down to earth. Going to have to read more. I think I have several of his poems dog-eared in my books.
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spiritualdragonfly said:
Look forward to you sharing more!!
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kimcoull said:
Oh, he is one of my favourite poets/philosophers! So raw and real…xxxxx
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calensariel said:
Hey, my favorite Lothlorianian! How are you doing?Things settling down any? You feeling better? Have you read a lot of his stuff? ❤
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